What Is the Diet of an Edmontosaurus?

The herbivorous and hoof-toed Edmontosaurus (Edmontosaurus annectens) was the largest duck-billed dinosaur from North America and lived during the late Cretaceous period. Traveling in large packs, and prey to the Tyrannosaurus rex and other predatory carnivorous dinosaurs, the Edmontosaurus is known as the "Cattle of the Cretaceous."

  1. Diet

    • The fossilized stomach contents of the Edmontosaurus and the greenery found near its remains suggest that it may have feasted on pine needles, seeds, twigs and other plants. Its great parallel sets of small teeth were specifically beneficial for grinding plant material.

    Geographical Distribution

    • Fossil remains reveal that great numbers of duck-billed dinosaur packs migrated from present-day Alaska to as far south as Mexico, perhaps in search of seasonal vegetation. The remains of the Edmontosaurus' primary predator, the Tyrannosaurus Rex, have also been found in the same geographical regions, which reflects the Edmontosaurus' and Tyrannosaurus Rex's prey/predator relationship.

    Fun Fact

    • Because of its webbed fingers found in mummified remains, the Edmontosaurus was thought of as an aquatic dinosaur. However, the webbed appearance may have been attributed to the mummification process, which may have caused the skin to drop away from its bones.